Jihye Byun is a Korean-born pianist, composer, and arranger. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Contemporary Keyboard Performance from Musicians Institute. In 2015, she won a grand prize at Stanley Clarke Scholarship Competition. And she is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Jazz Performance at William Paterson University.

The motive of the recording is my art name Hyun Gok 玄曲 given by my Pansori teacher Il-dong Bae. Hyun means ‘black (mixed with dark red)’, ‘mystery of universe or the invisible principle of life’. Gok means ‘curved’, ‘curve’ and ‘song’. I’ve contemplated on Hyun Gok for about three years, trying to understand its meaning and to realize that in my musical creations. Hyun Gok brought my attention to the moment of beginning - rather similar to the idea of singularity - and the silence before the music manifests. Chi-da is a verb in Korean meaning ‘hit’, and ’play’ a percussive musical instrument in a musical context, the action of playing, hitting to resonate/make/produce sounds. The contemplation on this very action is where the entire music was rooted and grown from in this record. All takes/pieces were created spontaneously out of the unsprung seeds of ideas buried in my mind over time, except Mysterious Valley, an existing composition of mine, which I re-constructed as improvising. The end result was 23 tracks in total; about 3 hours in length and I selected 13 tracks that spoke to me as I listened every day for about a month. In this record, silence is not just a part of music but the essence and the source of where music is created from. It is also an invitation to a deeper listening. The action of Chi-da happens in time. It is where time meets the space, creating and marking the presence of present with weight. Eunhye Jeong

"A Linear Thought" came about over a period of two years, in several stages and between many breaks, during which the work could rest. To graphic and contentual sketches of composition, there came a solitary voice, which eventually became word. "A Linear Thought" tells of intimacy and universality, of the voice as a primal personal organ for communication and emotion, and of the voice as an instrument common to all people.

For many years Tobias Meier and Silvan Jeger have been collaborating in various projects. As Cold Voodoo they explore the tension of physical presence and exhaustion on one hand and of an external perspective and serenity on the other hand. This contradiction is already implied in the group’s name and emphasised in their newly released record AB+. The album points soberly to the two sidedness of the medium and moreover the red plastic of the cassette and the title of the record, that can be read as blood type, alludes to a certain „blood-kitsch“. This comparision is developed in the cover art of the digital release, where the Ls and Os of the group’s name on the back of the cassette generate a mesmerizing array of ones and zeros, picturing the dense, shimmering netting, wich the two musicians open up on this record.

In society, worlds collide. Composition on improvisation - Sterility on emotion - Uncontrolled energy sallies on celebrating the details. The fusion creates an independent sound with strong gravitation. Each individual fills the space that it deserves or enjoys the tension of the void, and the sprinkling of the sun brings speed and clarity. Probably not, but it sure would be cool.

Big Bold Back Bone’s newest release - the third recording (Wide Ear Records - WER028) is titled "Emerge" and is the musical twin of the recently released CD / LP "In Search Of The Emerging Species" (Shhpuma Records - SHH032).The recording was made during the same studio session in Lisbon. In contrast to the slow, almost eerily concentrated sound stream epic with the 42-minute piece "Immerge" on "In Search Of The Emerging Species", "Emerge" looks like an antiepos. Seven pieces between 3 - 8 minutes covers the disc. Self-contained improvisations presented in an aesthetically impressive Big Bold Back Bone language.A consequence of the fact that the musicians of the band Marco von Orelli, Luis Lopes, Travassos and Sheldon Suter, worked together for almost 10 years and maintain a continuous exchange.In contrast to the twin, this music seems less radical, but more catchy, but without losing any sense of urgency, as if Big Bold Back Bond Bones deliberately left seven fork-paths on "Immerge" unheeded, in search of ... in "Emerge" to investigate in a fascinating way!

My first contact with the art of Jean-Michel Basquiat was at an exhibition of the Fondation Beyeler in Riehen, Switzerland. It was overwhelming - powerful, expressive, rich in colours and drama, full of serial and aleatoric components, motives, improvisation, and numerous references to Bebop and Hip Hop.It took me almost a year to translate Basquiat's work Untitled into music. I applied the twenty-six letters of the alphabet to the tonal range of the baritone saxophone, in order to generate melodies out of the countless words I found in the picture. I composed musical fragments on selected elements of the painting, collected information about Howard Hughes, bought Charlie Parker records and an old tape recorder, tried to find the original soundtrack of the comic hero Human Torch and looked for ways to integrate genius and madness, life and death in a piece of music.The result is Untitled Part I, a suite of musical events that can last nineteen to ninety minutes; recorded live at Shedhalle Zug in March 2017. More info...

Tim Daisy is a Chicago-based percussionist and composer working in the fields of improvised and composed music.

He has performed and recorded original music for modern dance, sound installations, film, and improvised music ensembles of various configurations since 1997. Tim also owns and operates Relay Records, documenting much of the creative work he has been involved with in Chicago and abroad since 2011.

Tim helps curate the weekly OPTION series at Experimental Sound Studio in Chicago. The programming explores contemporary perspectives on improvisation and composition in a ‘salon’ format, enabling local, national, and international artists to publicly discuss their practice and ideas as well as perform.

2. Sonic Feels 03:42

3. The Echo Song (For Arthur Russell) 03:04

4. Wood 03:09

5. Wire 02:28

6. Alloy 01:56

7. The Wobbly Insect 04:27

8. Sunday Afternoon 02:58

9. LED 03:13

10. Red And Orange 03:10

11. Static Points 03:53

12. Names 01:52

Solo compositions and improvisations performed by Chicago based percussionist and composer Tim Daisy

Issued in 1983 as The Kid s Got Ears , this album is one of the best and rarest that legendary Chicago pianist Lou Levy (1928-2001) recorded during his long and successful career. Guess I ve been lucky in music, he smiled. It seems like I was in the right place at the right time all my life, getting to play with Stan Getz, Woody Herman, Tommy Dorsey, Terry Gibbs... And then, of course, there were the great vocalists I ve worked with Sarah Vaughan, Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Nancy Wilson, Frank Sinatra...

Levy s attack is rapid-fire and many-noted, while his left rumbles at the chord progressions. His playing was known for its smooth sophistication and subtle swing. From the way I play, I suppose you could say that Bud Powell has been my biggest influence. Art Tatum s approach to harmony certainly influenced me too. It was so... so rich. But, of course, there are many other pianists I have great admiration for. Oscar Peterson, for instance. Naturally, other instrumentalists made a great impression. Certainly, Charlie Parker. And Dizzy, Miles, and Al Cohn. There s a reason I m Old Fashioned gives title to this album. Levy admitted to have a soft spot for this tune. I did that solo. I figured maybe I could handle that since it s my favorite tune. And it is a beautiful effort indeed. Be it solo, in a duet with bassist John Heard, or in a trio with drummer Shelly Manne, Levy shows his remarkable blend of lyricism and swing at each step. A model of taste, where the execution goes hand in hand with the creativity of this vastly underestimated pianist.

David Ambrosio, originally from the New York area, currently resides in NYC where he works as a freelance musician and educator. He leads the David Ambrosio Trio and David Ambrosio /Russ Meissner Sextet and is the co-leader of two collaborative bands, Grupo Los Santos and 40Twenty, as well as being a part of many groups including George Schuller’s Circle Wide, the Matt Renzi Trio, Eri Yamamoto Trio and the BMI/New York Jazz Orchestra led by Jim McNeely. He has also performed with such jazz greats as pianist Kenny Werner, Buddy DeFranco, George Garzone, Joseph Jarmon and Ralph Alessi.With degrees in Classical composition and Jazz performance, David has a broad musical palate which only became intensified by some unique travel experiences in past years. In 2001 he had the opportunity to perform in Cuba with Grupo Los Santos and Max Pollack's Rumbatap as well as to work with Afro/Cuban folkloric music and dance ensembles. Soon after that experience his interest in Afro/Cuban Bata drumming began and, consequently, for the past six years has been studying Bata with master hand drummer Carlos Gomez. On numerous occasions he has toured in Central and South East Asia on behalf of the US State Department as a performer and clinician. He has performed and recorded with members of Uzbekistan's Folk Instruments Chamber Orchestra Sogdiana and Kyrgyzstan's most acknowledged folk musicians.